The stupa (Tibetan: chorten) is the most ancient form of Buddhist art, symbolizing the monumental funerary mounds of ancient India that were appropriated into Buddhism as depositories for Buddha relics. Over time they assumed many forms, including scaled-down versions in metal, which serve the same function of housing holy relics, but whose higher purpose in a Buddhist monastery is to evoke the presence of the Buddha and his teachings.

Exhibition History

New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "The Arts of Nepal and Tibet: Recent Gifts," January 16, 2016–January 15, 2017.